Surprises, Stereotypes & the Beauty of the Blue Ridge

Walker Bird [00:00:01]:
I still like surprises.

Theresa Hubbard [00:00:03]:
Yes.

Walker Bird [00:00:04]:
I still like being surprised after. I'm judgy.

Theresa Hubbard [00:00:08]:
You're open.

Walker Bird [00:00:09]:
I'm open.

Theresa Hubbard [00:00:10]:
For people to have a different story than your judgment.

Walker Bird [00:00:14]:
Absolutely. And I like it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:00:16]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:00:16]:
You know, and I did. I wasn't wallowing in a judgment. It wasn't like I was a mean guy or anything like that. It just. That's what was, you know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:00:24]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:00:24]:
Label. Label, yeah. And. And so I love it when the label is not accurate because it's just another gift from the universe, you know?

Walker Bird [00:00:40]:
My Inner Knowing empowering you to find your compass for the journey. We are dedicated to supporting you to rediscover and trust your natural ability to navigate life. Each day by sharing insight and experience through the lens of two professional communicators and their guests, we intend to prompt internal inquiry that supports all those willing to explore a unique path.

Theresa Hubbard [00:01:08]:
Well, hello.

Walker Bird [00:01:09]:
Hello.

Theresa Hubbard [00:01:10]:
How are you feeling?

Walker Bird [00:01:12]:
Okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:01:12]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:01:13]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:01:15]:
Well, before we get deep into conversation about adventure and creativity, that's our theme for the month of July, we'll be hitting a lot of different topics. I mean, different areas. In that topic, I thought it would be good if we just took a moment to get grounded. We both came from full days at work and just life happening. So what do you need to do to get grounded?

Walker Bird [00:01:48]:
Carrying anxiety in the chest. So just, you know, get my feet on the ground and settle into our joint energy, which is always helpful, you know, which is take a breath and let all that go and then just, you know, enjoy you.

Theresa Hubbard [00:02:06]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:02:07]:
Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:02:07]:
Thanks, babe.

Walker Bird [00:02:08]:
Yeah. So got a lot of tension in the shoulder, so I need to kind of focus on that. Just, you know, the little teeny muscles, just allowing them to release. That's kind of what I do. Close my eyes. You ready?

Theresa Hubbard [00:02:35]:
You feeling better?

Walker Bird [00:02:38]:
Yeah, I'm getting there.

Theresa Hubbard [00:02:39]:
Okay. So last week you went on a hike.

Walker Bird [00:02:46]:
Another adventure.

Theresa Hubbard [00:02:47]:
Another adventure. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:02:49]:
Yes.

Theresa Hubbard [00:02:49]:
Yeah. So I've heard bits and pieces of the story, but I don't know that I've heard a sharing of the story. It's been busy since we got back.

Walker Bird [00:03:00]:
Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:03:01]:
So. So tell us about your adventure. What did you learn about yourself? What did you learn about life? What did you learn about others? What'd you learn about what you need? Did you ask for something that was difficult to ask for? Things like that.

Walker Bird [00:03:24]:
That's a lot.

Theresa Hubbard [00:03:26]:
Whatever you want, babe. Whatever you want.

Walker Bird [00:03:31]:
It's important for me, since I passed on other opportunities over 30 years, to do what I really like to do the best, which is be out in nature. It is fulfilling to me.

Theresa Hubbard [00:03:47]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:03:47]:
Even when it's hard, because the hiking thing is hard. But it's also a challenge, which I like. I get to see things I've never seen.

Theresa Hubbard [00:03:57]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:03:57]:
Have conversations that I've never had and there's plenty of time with. And like I said before, sometimes the physical exertion opens things up inside of you. That's a whole range of emotions and thoughts to. If you live a contemplated life or try to at least periodically. Which is what I do. Right. In and out of presence. More and more in.

Theresa Hubbard [00:04:24]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:04:26]:
To look for the meaning in those experiences. Right.

Theresa Hubbard [00:04:29]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:04:31]:
So we've already done the episode Water Wolves and Stardust Telephone from last September when I went on the Lake Superior hiking trail and just did 60 miles solo with just a tent.

Theresa Hubbard [00:04:47]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:04:48]:
And packed in my own food. Etc.

Theresa Hubbard [00:04:50]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:04:51]:
In six days. So it was really, really difficult and there was a lot to it. This time I was interested. My brother in law who is six years older than me and who has known me since I was 10.

Theresa Hubbard [00:05:08]:
Yay.

Walker Bird [00:05:09]:
Married to my oldest sister. And I just adore him. Look up to him. He taught me a lot about responsibility.

Theresa Hubbard [00:05:21]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:05:22]:
Doing things around the house just because they need to be done with no expectation of recognition or reward. Just taking care of things. He's a lot more disciplined than I am in physically, but probably in most things, you know, he's. There's just a lot of things to admire about him. And so he and I had never in all those years done something just the two of us.

Theresa Hubbard [00:05:55]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:05:56]:
And I know he likes to hike. He's done tons of world traveling. Not. He's never gone solo backpacking. So I think he admired that about me. But I, and I didn't know how he'd react. So I reached out and said, hey, how would you like to do a backpack trip? And he was like, oh my God. The way he responded was great.

Theresa Hubbard [00:06:21]:
Oh, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:06:22]:
So he was thrilled. He took it on himself to get it all planned, what we would do. And we both decided, hey, you know, because he said, I've always dreamed about doing Yosemite, which is a massive hike. Can be depending on what your choices are. But the elevation changes would be, you know, it's, it's. The Rocky Mountains are way different than the Blue Ridge Mountains, which is where we ended up going.

Theresa Hubbard [00:06:48]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:06:48]:
Doesn't mean this wasn't challenging, but I thought it was wise. And he suggested, hey, how about instead of just, you know, backpacking, carrying all of our own stuff, why don't we get a guide? We won't go the expensive route, but he'll keep us out of trouble and it'll give us a chance to see what we like. So that's what we did. We went to Asheville, North Carolina, which as you know, suffered the crazy floods from the hurricane that came through last year. The main part of the city, downtown was still intact. It was like there was an arts district, I guess, down in the bottoms, the river bottoms. And the rivers got to like, I don't know, multiple times their normal size and covered like a mile in width. Came out of their banks by a mile.

Theresa Hubbard [00:07:37]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:07:38]:
It was crazy.

Theresa Hubbard [00:07:39]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:07:40]:
So there were landslides in different areas of the mountains just because they'd already had weeks of rain. And then in came the hurricane. But in any event, that's where we were. But it wasn't just destruction where we went.

Theresa Hubbard [00:07:52]:
Gotcha.

Walker Bird [00:07:54]:
There was one section where the winds had blown down all the trees, but that was it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:07:59]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:08:00]:
So we're in the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are really cool. So that part of the adventure is, you know, you see those vistas with the multiple ranges off into the distance of more soft topped mountains than the Rockies.

Theresa Hubbard [00:08:15]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:08:16]:
It does not mean they're not steep.

Theresa Hubbard [00:08:19]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:08:19]:
Because they are.

Theresa Hubbard [00:08:20]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:08:23]:
As I found out. So this was different than the solo backpacking trip in that we had the guide, he, you know, took, checked with us the night before, made sure we had the right gear, kind of gave us the lay of, you know, showed us the map, all this stuff. And they took us to a base camp. We hiked in.

Theresa Hubbard [00:08:43]:
Okay.

Walker Bird [00:08:45]:
He said it was five miles. Our Brent had a fitness watch on and it was more like seven and a half or eight just because of the elevation changes by steps, you know. So in any event, we set up camp, set up our tents, you know, minimal stuff. And then, you know, he cooked dinner. But the dinner was like, you know, just round pasta with sausage cut up and cooked in a pan, you know, really simple with some pesto thrown on top of that, you know, so I'm just saying it wasn't bougie.

Theresa Hubbard [00:09:20]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:09:22]:
Like we're having filet mignon at a candle lit, you know, out of Africa tent. But I didn't know, you know, because. Yeah. Likes nice things too.

Theresa Hubbard [00:09:31]:
Yeah, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:09:33]:
He, he's also a Spartan. You know, it's just fascinating, his complexity as we are. So I'm doing a lot of talking. Are you good?

Theresa Hubbard [00:09:44]:
I'm good, I'm good.

Walker Bird [00:09:46]:
So anyway, it was just, you know, he and I went, I went, stayed with he and my sister for the. The afternoon before and spent the night at their house, which was great. We got to spend time together as a, you know, the three of us, which it always is, or more with my other siblings. But then he and I took off the next day and headed down. Then we spent the night together in a hotel room and then went on the hike the next day. So it was just tons of time. It was a five and a half hour drive from their house to Asheville. We got to talk the whole time.

Walker Bird [00:10:23]:
Some of it was old times. A lot of it was life experience and different adventures that we had had. Just sharing, you know, what had been going on. And it was just really nice to hear him talk and share.

Theresa Hubbard [00:10:40]:
Nice.

Walker Bird [00:10:41]:
Yeah, yeah. He's said he's a Spartan, he's tough, he does CrossFit. And so, you know, he's used to box jumping and all that crazy stuff across. And I've been sitting in a chair for 30 years. However, I've been starting to take a lot care of myself, as you know. So it was good. And he s. You know, he didn't, he was non judgmental.

Walker Bird [00:11:06]:
I think he was just thrilled that I was still strong enough to go do this sort of thing.

Theresa Hubbard [00:11:12]:
Yeah. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:11:13]:
So we got plans for more hikes.

Theresa Hubbard [00:11:15]:
Yeah. Yay.

Walker Bird [00:11:16]:
And. And we did our thing. You know, we. Our tents were set up next to each other. It's like, well, if I snore, just, you know, yell at me or whatever. And he's like, you didn't snore at all. And actually he snored just one night.

Theresa Hubbard [00:11:31]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:11:32]:
And so the, the guide was great. He taught us all about the flora and the fauna and we'd spot things and the guide was all excited. Oh my gosh, it's a blue, you know, blue, blah, blah, blah, snail. And I mean, little teeny little snail, you know, but he's, he could spot those things. It was wild.

Theresa Hubbard [00:11:52]:
Nice.

Walker Bird [00:11:53]:
It's just his brain was attuned to that and he was. His story is fascinating too. I told you, share a little.

Theresa Hubbard [00:12:00]:
Share a little.

Walker Bird [00:12:00]:
Yeah, he was a marketing guy. Like, I think he did trucking stuff. But in any event, he is fluent in Spanish and French and he lived in France working for a trucking conglomerate back in like 2008. The market turned and they were having, you know, cutbacks and that sort of stuff. And he just. And he's, he's a Midwestern boy from Ohio, you know, but he just decided, I'm done with the regular world. Yeah, I'm not doing that anymore.

Theresa Hubbard [00:12:38]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:12:39]:
Whatever his disappointments were, I'm sure there was something that was more triggering than what he, you know, you get it. We don't share it all. Not always. Maybe we share more than we should sometimes. I don't know. But any event, he. He sold his house, he sold his car.

Theresa Hubbard [00:13:01]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:13:01]:
He sold his belongings.

Theresa Hubbard [00:13:03]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:13:03]:
And he told his family, I'm through hiking the Appalachian Trail. It's 2600 mile hike. And he went.

Theresa Hubbard [00:13:11]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:13:13]:
And he wasn't in particularly great shape. He ended up losing 45 pounds or something like that. Went from 90, 190 to 145 pounds.

Theresa Hubbard [00:13:27]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:13:27]:
Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:13:28]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:13:29]:
And made some of the best friends of his life. And he got to the end of the hike. You hike from. Oh, I can't remember the city in Georgia. It's down in Georgia, northeast of Atlanta, where you start and you hike all the way to Mount Katadine in Maine.

Theresa Hubbard [00:13:48]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:13:50]:
And takes about six months. So he, I wanted to know how was it? You know, how'd you do it? Etc. And he's like, really? It's. The mental part is why most people quit. They just can't. Not day after day after day after day hike 15 to 20 plus miles. And he said, at first, you know, I could cover six miles or whatever. And he said, by the end, I could cover 24, 25 miles in a day.

Theresa Hubbard [00:14:18]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:14:21]:
And he learned how to set his mind to. And it was interesting. I said, well, when did it become, you know, easier? And he said, well, I was probably 800 miles in or something about a third of the way. And he said it was pouring down rain and had been for hours. And he said, I came upon this guy and you know, I'm just going. And he said, I came upon this guy, he's got, you know, his, his, oh, what do you call it? The poncho. He has his rain poncho over me and he's hunched down in these low trees and he's just like in a squat, you know, just ready to quit, you know, f this stuff. I'm going home.

Theresa Hubbard [00:15:08]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:15:09]:
And he said, you know, I. Hey, buddy, how you doing? And it was just like, oh, this effing rain. And he said, I didn't even realize it was raining until he said that.

Theresa Hubbard [00:15:20]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:15:21]:
And he said, I knew then that I was gonna make it the whole way.

Theresa Hubbard [00:15:26]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:15:26]:
And he said, it's just changing your attitude about what is being thrown at you. Which we all know, right? Well, maybe not all know, but maybe we've heard it. But you, you kind of know it and then you have to know it again. Like so many things and again and again and y. Um, but it just making a conscious choice or for him that was an unconscious choice. But it happened because he had continued to push through. And like so many things. You know, I've talked about a story I read about.

Walker Bird [00:16:05]:
Most people who drown die yards from the shore because they stop.

Theresa Hubbard [00:16:10]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:16:13]:
So in any event, it was fascinating story. He got to the end of the trail. He's like, I didn't know what I was gonna do when I got to the end. He said, when I got to the end, I decided I was going to become a creature of the woods. So he changed his whole life outlook. He lives in a van.

Theresa Hubbard [00:16:30]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:16:30]:
That he modified, you know, so he's got sleeping quarters and cooking facilities and all that stuff. There's not a bathroom or a shower. He does that at, you know, Planet Fitness or YMCA or truck stops, wherever. And he just decided, I don't care about having lots of money or things, you know. And he talked a lot about the cheapest way to live. And he goes down to a place in Mexico every year where a bunch of. And he's a rock climber too.

Theresa Hubbard [00:17:05]:
Oh, wow. Okay, sure.

Walker Bird [00:17:07]:
So hikers, rock climbers. He just, he said the only thing was like mountaineers that climb on ice. He said, that's not for me. They're crazy.

Theresa Hubbard [00:17:18]:
That's funny.

Walker Bird [00:17:21]:
Anyway, he was sweet and knowledgeable and he could name so many plants and animals. It was pretty wild. He was really good with mushrooms, you know, fungus and things and knew all about how they, you know, reproduced and spread and what they, you know, could like. He, he found chaga, you know, chaga chai. What is the big deal? And he showed it to us and we tasted it and all that stuff and wow. He cooked some mushrooms for us one night. Chicken of the woods.

Theresa Hubbard [00:17:51]:
Oh yeah, I've had them.

Walker Bird [00:17:52]:
He's in there cooking, you know, over at the campfire. I'm laid down because it was after like a 12 mile hike and I'm just like, ah. So I go get my tent and he's out there making up a Chicken of the woods song while he's cooking it. Chicken.

Theresa Hubbard [00:18:10]:
That'S awesome.

Walker Bird [00:18:11]:
It'll fill your tummy. You know, that sort of. It was so funny. So I mean, there's been. That's adventure, you know, you're experiencing people that are not conventional, not what you're used to, who are unafraid to just say, this is how I am and how I choose to live. And how I choose to claim what's important. Etc.

Theresa Hubbard [00:18:36]:
Yeah. Who are culture often values as crazy.

Walker Bird [00:18:44]:
Yeah. Or hippie or. You know, we put all these labels on. Lots of labels on each other. Right.

Theresa Hubbard [00:18:49]:
Yeah, I've done it too. How did Brent find him?

Walker Bird [00:18:53]:
He liked him.

Theresa Hubbard [00:18:55]:
No, I'm sorry. How did Brent find him?

Walker Bird [00:18:57]:
Oh, oh, it was through a company. He's a guide for a company.

Theresa Hubbard [00:19:00]:
Oh.

Walker Bird [00:19:01]:
So he signed up for like wilderness trekking or. I can't remember, sorry. Can't remember the name of the. Because Brent made all the arrangements. So I just paid Brent pay the company. You think since I wrote in their van I'd remember, but I don't. That's okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:19:14]:
No, we'll get it from Brent. We'll put it in the notes.

Walker Bird [00:19:17]:
Yeah, we'll put it in the notes. Because they do. I mean, there's all kinds of options. And I thought they did a really nice job. They outfit you to the degree that you want. If you want to bring all your own gear, you can bring it. If you just want to bring parts like your own sleeping bag, that's okay too. But they provided.

Walker Bird [00:19:33]:
I, I'm not hauling my nice equipment on a plane because I was. I've gotten mesh on the back of my nice backpack etc and I didn't want to get it torn up in baggage. Right. So they provided my sleeping bag, which they send always to the dry cleaners afterwards. So everything's clean. The tents were spotless. They offered trekking poles. I took my own of that, which is weird.

Walker Bird [00:19:56]:
I packed that in my suitcase. Bizarre. But I wanted my own. So they provided all that. And then he, he provided, you know, they were simple meals. Like we drove up, it was maybe a two hour drive from the hotel to where we parked in a parking lot and then can't, you know, tracked in to this campground. And it's not a campground is, you know, there's no running water. It was in a national forest preserve.

Walker Bird [00:20:22]:
And so, yeah, it was like flat spots in an opening that they've put their tents up in before.

Theresa Hubbard [00:20:29]:
Right, right.

Walker Bird [00:20:30]:
But what was cool about that was it was in this grove of, of rhododendron. And so these rhododendron are probably 25ft tall or taller, maybe 30ft tall. They're huge out in the woods. And it was like this super bloom that he'd never even seen. He said, I've never seen them bloom like this. And so you, you, if you looked up from underneath, you could just see the pink flowers above. But the, it was so powerful. It was like this humming through the woods because the bees and the flies were all getting sustenance from all those flowers.

Walker Bird [00:21:07]:
And they've got to do it when it's blooming.

Theresa Hubbard [00:21:09]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:21:11]:
And then what was cool, you'd come into a clearing or whatever and maybe get a side view, and there was just like this whole wall of pink. Sometimes it would be a, you know, arch of pink that you were walking through. But what was cool, too, especially, was when those fell, then it was a pink carpet.

Theresa Hubbard [00:21:30]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:21:30]:
And the mountain laurel was in full bloom. And there were azaleas. And then there were different kinds of rhododendron, too. Like a. Or azalea, one or the other. They're kind of the same family. But in any event, like a flame rhododendron, a flame azalea. And it was this orange.

Walker Bird [00:21:50]:
So there was just this natural beauty. And what's cool too see adventure.

Theresa Hubbard [00:21:55]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:21:55]:
I get excited. Yay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:21:59]:
Yes. Yes.

Walker Bird [00:22:02]:
The oak trees. The reason they call it the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are part of the Appalachian Mountain range, is the oak trees emit this gas. And I can't remember what the name is. I think it's isoprene, but I could be completely wrong. In any event, they emit a gas and the gas creates this blue tinge across the trees in the distance when you're looking. And so you have all this variation of color. It's a rainforest too. Did you know that?

Theresa Hubbard [00:22:33]:
No.

Walker Bird [00:22:33]:
So it's a rainforest. And so there's typically. You may have rain every day, it just but comes and goes, you know, sometimes it socks in for days straight. Luckily that wasn't this time.

Theresa Hubbard [00:22:45]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:22:47]:
But, you know, if it had been, we had raincoats. So anyway. But there's clouds, etc. And so there's all this variation in the distance of light coming through the clouds. You know, some spots are sunny and some spots are dark with this blue tinge across the whole thing and multiple ranges. Like the most we could count at some of the biggest spots was like six different ranges off into the distance. So you'd have a row of hills and a row of hills and a row of hills and.

Theresa Hubbard [00:23:15]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:23:15]:
I mean, it was just stunning. And we'd come out onto a rock outcrop and maybe take a break there and we'd all. There were. There was a woman with us too, which we can talk about that adventure for her.

Theresa Hubbard [00:23:29]:
Oh, sure, sure.

Walker Bird [00:23:30]:
Three dudes and her. That's pretty brave, I think.

Theresa Hubbard [00:23:34]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:23:35]:
But in any event, we. We'd all pile out onto this Rock outcrop. And it was, you know, it was, it was never like over, you know, a big overhanging. It was just a rock in the hillside. I mean, I wouldn't want to go up to the edge, but it wasn't scary like that. And you know, take the packs off, sit down and get, get a little break and just enjoy the magnificence. Nice of it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:24:02]:
Nice.

Walker Bird [00:24:02]:
And then the guide, he just was such a fascinating guy. You know, he's quoting Teddy Roosevelt. There was some quote, you know, about the patchwork of quilt laid out across the landscape, you know, is the, the beauty of the Appalachian Mountains. Anyway, it was. I like it when people do unexpected things. Yes, right. And he could name all kinds of books in all kinds of genres that he'd read. And he knew the digits of PI.

Walker Bird [00:24:40]:
He said when he was a kid he could name 52 of the decimal places.

Theresa Hubbard [00:24:44]:
Right, right. That's what I was assuming.

Walker Bird [00:24:47]:
He said. My mom said, yeah, you know, you're pretty smart. He's like, mom, yeah, I'm autistic. Anyway, he was. There was a brilliance to him.

Theresa Hubbard [00:25:01]:
Yeah. Oh yeah.

Walker Bird [00:25:02]:
So anyway, I think he listed off 22 or 25 spaces when we were talking about it. He said, I can't do the 52 anymore. He said, maybe, but he just did 22. Maybe he didn't want to brag. I don't. So I love the unexpected package, you know, because he was talking plants and animals all the way in, identifying leaves, identifying trees. And then he had the birdsong app that actually pop up a picture of the bird. Does yours do that?

Theresa Hubbard [00:25:35]:
It does.

Walker Bird [00:25:36]:
Okay, I didn't know that.

Theresa Hubbard [00:25:37]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:25:38]:
And. But he was just, you know, fixated on what's that bird? Because he was learning.

Theresa Hubbard [00:25:43]:
Right, right.

Walker Bird [00:25:46]:
So anyway, that was great. So let's talk about the woman that was.

Theresa Hubbard [00:25:50]:
Yes, yes, please.

Walker Bird [00:25:52]:
She was a real estate. In the real estate business in New York. Some like, I don't know if she was multi property manager or in sales. She was an executive type though, and 30 years old, but lives in Brooklyn. And you know, we go to the pre meeting and she's sitting in the, you know, in the hotel lobby area and we're like, oh. Because I thought it was just me and Brett.

Theresa Hubbard [00:26:24]:
Oh, gotcha, gotcha.

Walker Bird [00:26:25]:
Anyway, there she is and then the guide and you know, she didn't even blink at all to be out in the middle of nowhere with three dudes that she doesn't know. And it was so funny because she had all brand new gear, she'd gone to Rei. And it's like a brand new backpack and, like, every gadget you could think of.

Theresa Hubbard [00:26:46]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:26:47]:
She. Even at the. Like, the last day, we're sitting at this picnic table having just ham sandwiches because it was, like, simple fare, like I said. And I went to the restroom because we had stopped on the drive down the mountain. We'd stopped at a park, you know, like a park ranger station or whatever. You know, they have those spots for the national parks.

Theresa Hubbard [00:27:08]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:27:09]:
And I'd gone to the restroom. I came back, and she's with her brand new, fancy waterproof boots. She has this little brush, and there's water coming out of the brush as she scrubs the mud off the boots. And then she had. We got to camp, and she pulls out this. You know, it's like a plastic pink fan, you know, and then she had a white plastic fan. She had two fans.

Theresa Hubbard [00:27:35]:
That's awesome.

Walker Bird [00:27:35]:
So unexpected packages. Right? So you see that?

Theresa Hubbard [00:27:39]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:27:39]:
And of course, I'm like, okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:27:44]:
Oh, judgment.

Walker Bird [00:27:45]:
You mean she was cool.

Theresa Hubbard [00:27:46]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:27:46]:
You know, thinking.

Theresa Hubbard [00:27:50]:
How'S she gonna make.

Walker Bird [00:27:51]:
Let me be honest, you know, like, Barbie is what I was thinking, which is not. I mean, I'll just be honest. That went through my mind. But not in a bad like. Like, good Lord. I don't want to be with this person. But this ought to be interesting. Right? Here is the chubby guy from Missouri.

Walker Bird [00:28:08]:
Make a judgment on this woman from New York City. Yep. Anyway.

Theresa Hubbard [00:28:14]:
As we do.

Walker Bird [00:28:15]:
As we do. And she was a freaking rock star. I mean, she. That woman was bold. She was kind. She wanted to share her snacks. And not afraid to say, yes, I'll have seconds or thirds. I mean, and she.

Walker Bird [00:28:38]:
But she worked it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:28:39]:
It. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:28:40]:
She'd be up before the rest of us. She was right on the. The guide's tail the whole time. I mean, she. If he was gonna walk fast, she was gonna keep pace with him. And meanwhile, I'm taking. You know, and I'm proud of myself. I'm.

Walker Bird [00:28:55]:
It's okay. I. I can do it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:28:57]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:28:58]:
But the. I'm. I'm doing that contrast not to shame myself, but to emphasize the judgment piece, you know, and it wasn't bad, but I was noticing the newness of all that and the gadgets and things and thinking, oh, you know, this could be wild. And then one. Like, the guide had to take a restroom break. He's like, you guys, come on. You know, so we're going up. This is the hardest part of the hike.

Walker Bird [00:29:25]:
We're hiking Cold Mountain.

Theresa Hubbard [00:29:27]:
Okay.

Walker Bird [00:29:27]:
Which is from the movie With Jude Law and Nicole Kidman and all that. So. Renee Zellweger, do you remember? Anyway, it's about a group of Confederate soldiers who desert and they're trying to make their way back home. And then there were groups of bounty hunters basically, who would try to. Were trying to catch deserters and turn them in to get paid and then they'd get hanged.

Theresa Hubbard [00:29:52]:
Yeah. Wow.

Walker Bird [00:29:53]:
Yeah. So it's pretty intense movie. But in any event, we're in that same location. So you hike. It was five miles out. When you get to mile three and a half, the last bit of the five miles is a mile and a half up from the base of Cold Mountain. And it was torture. So the guide takes a break to go to the bathroom.

Walker Bird [00:30:18]:
Go on. You know, so he could have some privacy as we went up the trail. And she took the lead and she was like a gazelle. The guide had been holding her back with his speed because he was, you know, I think he was measuring his speed to make sure the group stayed together. But I mean, she was. And it wasn't to prove anything either. She was just like freedom, you know, and she was so sweet, so kind, so gracious and sharing and all that stuff. And this package of.

Walker Bird [00:30:59]:
Of a sophisticated lady.

Theresa Hubbard [00:31:01]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:31:01]:
You know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:31:02]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:31:03]:
And so that was really cool. And I'd like to be shown by the universe that. Yeah. You still make judgments, Walker. And, you know, this is. We're going to share with you the beauty of humanity. The complexity.

Theresa Hubbard [00:31:22]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:31:23]:
And it just. That sort of experience. Experience just gives me great appreciation every time, you know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:31:31]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:31:31]:
So if she happens to listen to this, I hope I didn't hurt her feelings by admitting to my judgment, but it was true. And she was just really cool and unafraid, or at least, you know, she overcame whatever fear she had.

Theresa Hubbard [00:31:49]:
Yeah. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:31:50]:
She did tell us on the last day after it was all over that she had mace. Probably some super mace, double holstered.

Theresa Hubbard [00:32:05]:
So.

Walker Bird [00:32:06]:
Oh, gosh.

Theresa Hubbard [00:32:07]:
Anyway, just making sure. That's good.

Walker Bird [00:32:09]:
Well, yeah, I mean, you. I think it's important to take responsibility for ourselves. If you're going to go on adventure like that, you do need to contemplate, you know, if things were to go south, am I prepared to take care of myself?

Theresa Hubbard [00:32:23]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:32:23]:
That's part of it too, right?

Theresa Hubbard [00:32:25]:
In all the ways.

Walker Bird [00:32:26]:
In all the ways. Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:32:27]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:32:29]:
So. But she. She was like, you know, all sad when we dropped her off at her bed and breakfast back in Asheville. She's like, oh, I'm gonna miss you guys. And it was a Big pouty lip, you know, she meant it, too. So we did. Well, she liked us, which is great. Great.

Theresa Hubbard [00:32:43]:
Sounds like a great crew.

Walker Bird [00:32:44]:
We liked her, too. Yeah, it was nice. And. Yeah. So just all those experiences of learning about how to hike and what to eat and. Oh, I. I got off track. Let me share this one last thing.

Walker Bird [00:32:59]:
So he goes to Mexico every year and does climb, you know, rock climbing and hiking with all. I guess a bunch of hikers go to this place, and it's outside of a big city, you know, maybe, I don't know, miles away. And so maybe 20 miles or more, you know, it's not. I just want to make sure it's not a suburb of a big city. It's a small town in Mexico and some family has basically, you know, adopted him, and he doesn't have a lot, you know. So he said, I lived there for three months for 1500 bucks. Yeah. You know, he said, goodness sakes, are things just that cheap? 30 said, well, you got to learn how to manage.

Walker Bird [00:33:39]:
And she said, but you get pretty good meals. And he said, and a bunch of hikers go, you know, and he said, they always, you know, if they're. They always take more food than they need and then they leave the food. And he said, so the hotel owner, where the. All the, you know, the more wealthy hikers stay, will put all that food in a bin. And he said, if you're first at the bin, you got all you want. He said, wow, wow. So that was part of what he does.

Walker Bird [00:34:09]:
And he's, you know, it doesn't all have to be perfect and beautiful and fresh. He's like, you know, produce. We throw away so much produce, right, that, you know, just because it's not pristine, it may have, you know, a spot you got to cut off or it's wilted, you know, the leaves on whatever it is are wilted, etc. He said, you know, you don't have to. It's still good, right? And it's just, like I said, it's a different appreciation for what is adequate to live, what's enough, what are your priorities? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:34:45]:
We overdo often.

Walker Bird [00:34:47]:
I think in the United States especially, we do, you know, we live a very different life of largess and abundance than so many places. I. That's my perception.

Theresa Hubbard [00:35:01]:
Sure.

Walker Bird [00:35:01]:
I haven't been a lot of those places.

Theresa Hubbard [00:35:04]:
Not everyone.

Walker Bird [00:35:04]:
Not everyone for sure. And less and less recently, unfortunately. But in any event, it was. It's just nice to see those different perspectives and different ways of living and I told him that.

Theresa Hubbard [00:35:20]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:35:21]:
You know, I think there was some judgment on his part. You know, here's some trial lawyers, like, you know, so there's a little bit of. He back off. You know, he backed off a little bit. Because I didn't say that the first night. We didn't. You know, I like to not get into what do you do? Is the first question.

Theresa Hubbard [00:35:37]:
Right, right.

Walker Bird [00:35:38]:
But he asked me while we were hiking.

Theresa Hubbard [00:35:39]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:35:40]:
So he backed off a little bit after that, but he came back around. Yeah, I was an okay guy. I could do stuff. I think it was when there's this really cool thing called shining rock. And it's like a building sized vein of quartz that's jutting up out of this hillside before you get to the base camp at Cold Mountain.

Theresa Hubbard [00:36:00]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:36:01]:
Huge. And it's, it's not clear, but it's, it's white and it's cool and shiny and. Whew. That was great. So we're walking up and I'm feeling the tingles, you know, and the energy of that whole thing. And there were, you know, Brent's not a woo woo type of a person. And the guide was like, yeah, you could recharge your crystals here. And so he.

Walker Bird [00:36:26]:
But then he kind of, you know, was acting like he didn't really mean it, but I think he did.

Theresa Hubbard [00:36:32]:
That's funny.

Walker Bird [00:36:33]:
Yeah. So anyway, we, we had to. You have to climb up to get up on top to be able to go. You walk across it to the edge to see the view of the multiple hills. And it was, it was steep. And it's a little bit. It's not a little bit. It's slick compared to other rocks.

Theresa Hubbard [00:36:53]:
Sure, sure.

Walker Bird [00:36:56]:
So we got up there and then we came. We were coming back down and he came to a really steep spot and he said, here's how you climb this. And he said, left foot here. Hand on this ledge over here because there's a big rock here. Put your hand here. There's another foot place in a crack, you know. And then he showed us how to get down. And it was, I don't know, it wasn't way down, but, you know, a good 15ft or something like that.

Walker Bird [00:37:20]:
And so here's his judgment of me. He goes down, the other two go down. And I'm last. And he's, you know, like kind of getting ready to catch me.

Theresa Hubbard [00:37:35]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:37:35]:
Because he thinks I'm gonna slide.

Theresa Hubbard [00:37:37]:
Yeah. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:37:39]:
And I just mountain goated it just like he did.

Theresa Hubbard [00:37:41]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:37:42]:
You know, and then I, you know, my foot comes down on this because he's standing, you know, because there's like a dirt edge at the base and then more rocks to go down after that. But I get to the, you know, dirt spot and take that last step. And I look at him like that because I know he didn't think I could do it. And he said, well, I didn't think you could do that. So I got a little bit of respect back, I think, you know, and then I was back in the, the club. So. Yeah, yeah, you know, he's thinking. I don't know what he was thinking, but my interpretation is he's thinking lawyer from Midwest Missouri, you know, doesn't get out much, blah, blah, toxic.

Walker Bird [00:38:27]:
Big game about doing the solo backpack trip. But, you know, it looks a little out of shape to me anyway. Who knows what he was really thinking. What we make up in our heads.

Theresa Hubbard [00:38:38]:
We make up a lot stories. Lots of stories. So.

Walker Bird [00:38:42]:
Okay, yeah, your turn. Back to me.

Theresa Hubbard [00:38:51]:
We are going back to you.

Walker Bird [00:38:53]:
Yeah. Okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:38:56]:
I want you to take a moment.

Walker Bird [00:38:59]:
I got all energized about that.

Theresa Hubbard [00:39:00]:
It's good. It's good.

Walker Bird [00:39:02]:
Because I was droopy.

Theresa Hubbard [00:39:03]:
Yeah, it's good. It was a good experience. This is why we explore and we take adventure, right?

Walker Bird [00:39:11]:
Yeah. Okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:39:14]:
What do you think was one of the most unexpected things you saw? And what do you think was one of the most beautiful things you saw?

Walker Bird [00:39:34]:
Let me think about that for a second. There's a lot, babe, but I'm gonna try just. Okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:40:10]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's okay.

Walker Bird [00:40:16]:
The most beautiful thing I saw was we were coming back after the, the up cold mountain and back down and my hips were just screaming because I've been, as you know, I've been having hip flexor problems from sitting in a chair for 30 years and maybe some osteoarthritis. But in any event, you know, that was difficult and I. Because I don't do box jumping at CrossFit like my brother in law coming down, if there was like a three foot or more drop in spots, he might just jump it. And so would the others.

Theresa Hubbard [00:40:54]:
Sure.

Walker Bird [00:40:54]:
The gazelle and the guide.

Theresa Hubbard [00:40:55]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:40:57]:
But I would have to spider down.

Theresa Hubbard [00:40:59]:
Yeah, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:40:59]:
And so I would get back behind. But in any event. So we're exhausted coming back from that and we end up on this, on an outcrop. Everybody takes a break and we're seeing the view that we'd seen on the way in because we. It was out and back that day. So it was beautiful. I'd seen it. So funny how I've seen That still beautiful.

Walker Bird [00:41:29]:
But any event, they all get up and I then had, because I was panting, you know, by the time they're ready to go, I still hadn't gone to the bathroom. So like, hey, go on, I'm gonna catch up. And so I stopped, go to the bathroom. And I look over on the other side of this path and realize that there's another like, path that goes up. And I go up. It was like cloudy on the side we'd been sitting on. And so I walk up that path and it's not very far, 20ft maybe, and it's up through these boulders. And I come out across the boulders and I'm so facing the completely opposite direction.

Walker Bird [00:42:10]:
And the trees on, on the other side were obscuring the view, so you couldn't see. So I get up to the top and it was like the wall of clouds was even with the top of this ridge. And so it's blue sky, there's sunshine on this far side, and it opens up into this huge, you know, different looking valley. And I could see some, you know, it was a smaller city in like, you know, in a distant valley going up. And, and it just, it was like a secret gift just for me because the guide hadn't said, hey, go up here and take a look at this view and the contrast between the two and. And I had thought I had almost not done it. I was like, I need to catch up. I don't want to be behind.

Walker Bird [00:43:10]:
You know, they're just moving out. Right. I should do this, I should do that, you know, whatever. And. Oh, whatever. And. And I just, you know, it dawned on me, I was like, this may be the only time in your life where you could find out what's at the top of that trail. And then I did it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:43:27]:
Yay.

Walker Bird [00:43:28]:
Yeah. And it was, it was a gift, so. And then surprising was the quartz outcrop.

Theresa Hubbard [00:43:44]:
Nice.

Walker Bird [00:43:44]:
Completely unexpected. Yeah, it was beautiful too.

Theresa Hubbard [00:43:47]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:43:48]:
But more than that, different. You know, you're in this area where there's not a lot of obvious rock. And if it is, it's big boulders that are granite and they're gray. And then you see from a distance this white splash on the hill he pointed out when we were, I don't know, 10 miles away.

Theresa Hubbard [00:44:20]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:44:21]:
And then when we got to the camp, it was only like 15 minutes from the camp. And then you're there in it. And you start, you're walking. As you get in closer, you still can't see it because there's a rise in front of you. And you start to. To see white quartz rocks. I'm like, whoa, that's cool. You know, and then there'd be like a pink.

Walker Bird [00:44:39]:
Like a rose quartz, almost. Well, that's cool. You know, I didn't expect that. And then the guide says, look at this one. He said, that's a Cherokee snowman. He was just messing with us, you know, because it was like a big, you know, hunk of quartz out in the middle. You didn't see all the other until you come over the rise. And then all of a sudden, wow.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:02]:
Wow.

Walker Bird [00:45:02]:
And it was just so unexpected. And how it felt too.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:05]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:45:05]:
You know, it almost felt wet, even though it wasn't.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:08]:
Oh, yeah. Yeah, I can imagine.

Walker Bird [00:45:10]:
So that was a surprise.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:13]:
Yay.

Walker Bird [00:45:13]:
Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:15]:
What do you feel like you learned about yourself on this trip?

Walker Bird [00:45:24]:
I still like surprises.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:26]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:45:28]:
I still like being surprised after. I'm judgy.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:32]:
You're open.

Walker Bird [00:45:33]:
I'm open.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:34]:
For people to have a different story than your judgment.

Walker Bird [00:45:37]:
Absolutely. And I like it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:39]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:45:40]:
You know, and I did. I wasn't wallowing the judgment. It wasn't like I was a mean guy or anything like that. It just. That's what was, you know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:48]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:45:48]:
Label. Label.

Theresa Hubbard [00:45:50]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:45:51]:
And. And so I love it when the label is not accurate because it's just another gift from the universe, you know?

Theresa Hubbard [00:46:00]:
Yeah. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:46:02]:
Because people are lovely.

Theresa Hubbard [00:46:04]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:46:04]:
You know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:46:05]:
So what did you learn about yourself?

Walker Bird [00:46:07]:
Well, that I still have. I still label.

Theresa Hubbard [00:46:12]:
Okay.

Walker Bird [00:46:13]:
Okay. But also that, like you said, I'm. I'm still open to hanging in there long enough to be, you know, to learn something different. And I love that piece about my life, you know, what else did I learn? More exposure to different views on what is a fulfilling life.

Theresa Hubbard [00:46:40]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:46:41]:
So I still retain that curiosity, you know, And I like nice things. You know, this home is important to me, etc. But.

Theresa Hubbard [00:46:50]:
But.

Walker Bird [00:46:53]:
I think, as I think about it while we're talking, that the more exposure I have to people with those different types of views, the more prepared I would be if it was all taken away. You know, we'd all be okay. You know, and not just okay. I think we could thrive. We'd have to. To learn.

Theresa Hubbard [00:47:21]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:47:22]:
You know. Okay. Did that stuff really mean that much to me? Yes. It was convenient. Yes. It was comfortable. All those things. But he.

Walker Bird [00:47:30]:
This guide is happy, fulfilled, doing what he wants to do. Not worrying about the worries of the world.

Theresa Hubbard [00:47:42]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:47:42]:
Of, you know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:47:43]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:47:44]:
The world. Right. You know, he's not watching the nightly news or doom scrolling on his phone. He's learning about plants and animals and. And reading all kinds of.

Theresa Hubbard [00:47:56]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:47:56]:
Fiction.

Theresa Hubbard [00:47:57]:
Yeah, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:47:59]:
Yeah. So I think it's, you know, it's good to have be reminded of that, I think because who knows?

Theresa Hubbard [00:48:11]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:48:12]:
You know, we just don't know what curves are going to be thrown at us. Curveballs. What else that I, I can still dig deep. And I said this about the last trip. That was hard going up that mountain. I wanted to stop.

Theresa Hubbard [00:48:26]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:48:27]:
And lay down. But I didn't.

Theresa Hubbard [00:48:30]:
Yeah. And you could have. And gotten back up again and they.

Walker Bird [00:48:34]:
Would have been fine.

Theresa Hubbard [00:48:35]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:48:35]:
But I chose to push myself on. I would stop and get my heartbeat to regulate and then I would move on. And I like still being able to make that choice. And I think your point is important. I think this is your point is that if I had chosen. Hey, I just, I'm going to rest bigger. That that would be okay too do without judging myself as a failure or not good enough. Etc.

Walker Bird [00:49:04]:
But I also, there were times when I was in the back and I had to work on that. The judgment of the judgment piece. You know, not in good enough shape. You know, shouldn't live differently for all those years. You know, worked out like your brother in law because he's always worked out.

Theresa Hubbard [00:49:24]:
Yeah. You know, so comparative.

Walker Bird [00:49:26]:
So. Yeah. So I. But you know, it's learning about myself that I still. Even though I've done so much work that that still can come up. But also seeing it come up.

Theresa Hubbard [00:49:37]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:49:37]:
You know, I'm much better at. Oh, that's what I'm doing to myself. And let's not do that.

Theresa Hubbard [00:49:44]:
Right.

Walker Bird [00:49:44]:
You know, you're doing really great actually. Look at you go.

Theresa Hubbard [00:49:49]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:49:49]:
Yeah. There's probably lots of other things I could say I learned too, but anyway, those are big ones.

Theresa Hubbard [00:49:58]:
Thanks for sharing your adventure, babe.

Walker Bird [00:50:01]:
You're welcome. Thanks for supporting me.

Theresa Hubbard [00:50:05]:
Absolutely.

Walker Bird [00:50:06]:
Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:50:06]:
Always.

Walker Bird [00:50:09]:
Yeah. There's gonna be lots more hikes, as you know.

Theresa Hubbard [00:50:12]:
I do, I do. And I support you going on them.

Walker Bird [00:50:23]:
Well, when we do Yosemite, the plan is for you and Liz to join us once we get back to the hotel for the, you know, relaxing, the relax. It sounds still enjoy the beauty of the mountains, but not with the deprivations of a mountain hike. Right?

Theresa Hubbard [00:50:40]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And that's good for me.

Walker Bird [00:50:47]:
So what's your next big adventure?

Theresa Hubbard [00:50:50]:
Well, I think what we'll talk about next was our adventure to Europe.

Walker Bird [00:50:54]:
Ah, okay.

Theresa Hubbard [00:50:55]:
Because I think that, I mean, not right now. Next episode. Next episode.

Walker Bird [00:50:59]:
Next one.

Theresa Hubbard [00:51:00]:
Just because there was a lot of learning there too. And Adventure for us and hiking, you know, different hiking than what you did, but. But still lots of learning, challenging.

Walker Bird [00:51:14]:
We walked 20 some odd thousand steps that day. So we'll get to it.

Theresa Hubbard [00:51:19]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Very different than walking 20,000 steps in the city. Yes.

Walker Bird [00:51:25]:
That was hard too.

Theresa Hubbard [00:51:25]:
That was our too. But different in the mountains. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:51:31]:
So before we go, we need to mention a couple of things.

Theresa Hubbard [00:51:34]:
Oh, yeah, sure. So we are parenting series, conversations we wish our parents had with us growing up. The introductory video is going to come out in July and then our plan is to release an episode with the conversation every other week after that. And we don't know how long it's going to go on because the topics continue to expand and so we were going to limit it and now we're just going to do one.

Walker Bird [00:52:11]:
An open series.

Theresa Hubbard [00:52:12]:
An open series. And so. And they won't be long, you know, 10 to 15 minutes. But it'll give people plenty of things to think about.

Walker Bird [00:52:19]:
Yeah.

Theresa Hubbard [00:52:20]:
In a really compact episode. And they'll be set up as a playlist on YouTube so you can watch as them in a row. If you can binge watch. You can binge watch them if you want. Yeah. And just continuing to remind people that if you're listening on YouTube to do the subscribe and notification. So click twice. It's actually three clicks because I think it's like subscribe notification and then all.

Theresa Hubbard [00:52:50]:
I think it's like it's three.

Walker Bird [00:52:52]:
It's really three clicks and sometimes there's a little delay between, you know, the two.

Theresa Hubbard [00:52:56]:
Oh, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:52:57]:
It's just interesting.

Theresa Hubbard [00:52:58]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:52:58]:
But it's really important.

Theresa Hubbard [00:52:59]:
Important. Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:53:00]:
You know, if people want to. If you don't end up doing the notifications, you may not get notice of when the latest stuff comes out. So.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:07]:
Yeah, yeah.

Walker Bird [00:53:08]:
Maybe a lot of people know that, but not me.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:10]:
I know. We're, you know, it's okay. So much to learn. So much to learn. But anyway, so next time we'll talk about our trip to Europe and the adventure that we had and one of the creative things we had to do with one of the vehicles that we rented.

Walker Bird [00:53:27]:
You're doing all the talking next time.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:29]:
I am. Okay.

Walker Bird [00:53:31]:
I want to. We need to hear how you experience adventure.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:33]:
Oh, okay. Okay. Well, I still want. You were there too.

Walker Bird [00:53:37]:
I know. I'll chime in.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:38]:
Yeah.

Walker Bird [00:53:39]:
I love you.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:39]:
I love you too.

Walker Bird [00:53:41]:
Thanks.

Theresa Hubbard [00:53:44]:
Thank you for joining us today. We are excited to explore life with you. We encourage curiosity, self growth and we strive to be more compassionate every day.